title: An exploration of risk for recurrent falls in two geriatric care settings.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Fall events were examined in two distinct geriatric populations to identify factors associated with repeat fallers, and to examine whether patients who use gait aids, specifically a walker, were more likely to experience repeat falls. Each unit already had a generic program for falls prevention in place.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary data analysis was conducted on information collected during the pilot testing of a new quality assurance Incident Reporting Tool between October 2006 and September 2008. The study settings included an in-patient geriatric rehabilitation unit (GRU) and a long stay veterans' unit (LSVU) in a rehabilitation and long-stay hospital in Ontario. Participants were two hundred and twenty three individuals, aged 65 years or older on these two units, who experienced one or more fall incidents during the study period.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Logistic regression analyses showed that on the GRU age was significantly associated with repeat falls. On the LSVU first falls in the morning or late evening were associated with repeat falling. Walker as a gait aid listed at time of first fall was not associated with repeat falls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study suggests that different intervention may be necessary in different geriatric settings to identify, for secondary prevention, certain individuals for which the generic programs prove inadequate. Information collection with a specific focus on the issue of repeat falls may be necessary for greater insight.
authors.affiliation: School of Health Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences, Western University, Ontario, Canada. mkloseck@uwo.ca.
authors.forename: Humeira
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tariq
authors.forename: Marita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kloseck
authors.forename: Richard G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Crilly
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gutmanis
authors.forename: Maggie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gibson
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006299:Health Services for the Aged; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009864:Ontario / Q000453:epidemiology; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers; D012307:Risk Factors; D012308:Risk Management / Q000379:methods*; D055502:Secondary Prevention